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Devi, the Great Goddess (Shakti)
Devi Mahatmya c. AD 400–600; goddess worship far older· Belief or practice· Hindu, Buddhist, Jain & Sikh
Mostly agreed by scholarsMost historians agree; some details uncertain.
The Hindu Great Goddess, Devi, worshipped as Shakti, the divine power that creates, sustains and destroys the universe.
See it on the World Religions map →What it is
Devi appears in many forms: gentle Parvati, the warrior Durga riding a lion, fierce dark Kali, Lakshmi of wealth and Saraswati of learning. Her devotees, called Shaktas, see these as faces of one supreme Goddess. The Devi Mahatmya, a Sanskrit text of about AD 400–600, tells how Durga slew the buffalo demon Mahisha when the male gods could not. Tantra later made Shakti central to ritual. Autumn festivals, Navaratri and Bengal's Durga Puja, draw many millions each year.
Why it matters
Shaktism is one of Hinduism's major traditions, and goddess worship pervades village life across India. It is one of the world's most developed theologies of a supreme female divine.
Sources and history
The Devi Mahatmya, part of the Markandeya Purana; goddess temples and sculpture from the Gupta era; the network of Shakti Pitha shrines; living festival traditions.
Questions and debates
Whether female figurines from the Indus Valley show early goddess worship, linking Devi to pre-Vedic religion, is debated.
Connections (2)
▸Devi, the Great Goddess (Shakti) anchors the Shakta tradition of HinduismMostly agreed by scholars
The connection
Shakta Hindus worship the Goddess, Devi, as the supreme power (shakti) behind the universe, the active energy without which even Shiva is inert. She appears as gentle Parvati and Lakshmi, warrior Durga and fierce Kali. The Devi Mahatmya tells of Durga defeating the buffalo demon and is recited at the Navaratri festival.
When and where
The Devi Mahatmya was composed in northern India about AD 400–600; Shakta worship is strongest today in Bengal, Assam and Nepal, with Durga Puja celebrated widely.
How do we know?
Devi Mahatmya manuscripts, goddess temples such as Kamakhya in Assam, and centuries of festival practice; scholars count Shaktism as Hinduism's third main branch.
Questions and debates
How far goddess worship reaches back, perhaps to Indus Valley figurines, and how many Hindus are primarily Shakta are both uncertain.
▸Devi, the Great Goddess (Shakti) is revered as the power and consort of ShivaMostly agreed by scholars
The connection
In Hindu thought, Shakti is the active energy that makes Shiva's pure consciousness effective; a popular saying holds that without Shakti, Shiva is shava, a corpse. As consort the Goddess is Parvati, Shiva's wife and mother of Ganesha. Shaktas often see her as the greater power; the Ardhanarishvara image shows the two as one half-male, half-female body.
When and where
India; the pairing appears in the epics and Puranas, and in Tantra from about AD 600, especially in Bengal, Assam and Kashmir.
How do we know?
Sanskrit texts like the Devi Mahatmya and the Saundarya Lahari, and temple images such as the Ardhanarishvara at Elephanta (c. 500s).
Questions and debates
Whether goddess worship was originally separate and later attached to Shiva, or the pair developed together, is debated.